Alabama's younger plays have to stay patient in Nick Saban's system

Derrick Henry was the nation’s leading rusher in high school a year ago. In his first year at Alabama, Henry is not even second on the depth chart. Henry, just like several other highly talented freshman Tide players, will have to be patient and wait his turn for a bigger role on coach Nick Saban’s team.

Dusty Compton

By Aaron SuttlesSports Writer

Published: Sunday, September 8, 2013 at 3:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Sunday, September 8, 2013 at 12:34 a.m.

How do you wait your turn when you think you’re good enough to play?

When you recruit at the level the University of Alabama has under the leadership of Nick Saban, the end result is a roster full of athletes who have excelled at every level they’ve played from pee-wee leagues to high school.

The same ingredients that tend to make them great — talent, confidence and youth — can lead to a combustible situation if not handled the right way.

“It comes down to the young guy being truthful with himself about what he is as a player, and is he better than the guy who is playing?” former UA defensive lineman and current Philadelphia Eagle Damion Square said. “And sometimes it’s not about talent, it’s just about the fact of waiting your turn because that guy in front of you is good enough to win games. Why replace something that’s working?

“Me, I dealt with it by getting better every day. Understand that even if you redshirt, you’re a part of this team. If you approach practice with great effort you’re a part of the W. That’s how I felt when I was a freshman. It was hard sometimes because you wanted to be a part of it. You wanted to be out there.”

Most were the best players on their high school teams, so it can be a shock to the system when they don’t see the field as soon as they’d like. They tend to forget the highly recruited athletes in front of them with more experience.

Friends and family back home are in their ears asking them why they aren’t playing. Embarrassment and ego add to the frustration.

“There’s no doubt about it. It’s probably the No. 1 thing besides your personal ego,” Square said. “And it’s always coming from the guys that don’t even know anything about football. Guys are always going to have their opinion, and your family loves you and wants to see you play. But you have to understand that they’re not football coaches.”

Vinnie Sunseri was the Class 6A defensive player of the year in the state his senior year at Northridge High School. But he was limited mostly to special teams play his freshman season at UA.

“It gets frustrating coming from high school and not being able to get on the field,” Sunseri said. “But you know you have to respect the process. I did it when I was a freshman. It was frustrating just to be on special teams sometimes, but you can make a name for yourself on special teams, and that’s what I tried to do my freshman year. You’ve got to be patient with it because when your time comes, it comes and you’ve got to be ready for it. And if you’re focusing on getting on the field and whining about not being on the field, you won’t be ready for when your time comes. I just tell the younger guys to focus, focus, focus, because when your time comes, you’ve got to be ready for it.”

Keeping a good attitude and making the most of whatever opportunity is given is key. So is the leadership of having an experienced player throw an arm around a young guy and show him the way. Sunseri had Mark Barron. Square did it his senior season.

“I did it all the time. I’d catch guys pouting and put them in their place,” Square said. “I think just working toward perfection as a player is really what guys need to do. When their name is called, they’ll be more prepared if they just work towards perfection on the field.”

Square recently made active roster for Philadelphia after being signed as an undrafted free agent.

<p>How do you wait your turn when you think you're good enough to play?</p><p>When you recruit at the level the University of Alabama has under the leadership of Nick Saban, the end result is a roster full of athletes who have excelled at every level they've played from pee-wee leagues to high school.</p><p>The same ingredients that tend to make them great — talent, confidence and youth — can lead to a combustible situation if not handled the right way.</p><p>“It comes down to the young guy being truthful with himself about what he is as a player, and is he better than the guy who is playing?” former UA defensive lineman and current Philadelphia Eagle Damion Square said. “And sometimes it's not about talent, it's just about the fact of waiting your turn because that guy in front of you is good enough to win games. Why replace something that's working?</p><p>“Me, I dealt with it by getting better every day. Understand that even if you redshirt, you're a part of this team. If you approach practice with great effort you're a part of the W. That's how I felt when I was a freshman. It was hard sometimes because you wanted to be a part of it. You wanted to be out there.”</p><p>Most were the best players on their high school teams, so it can be a shock to the system when they don't see the field as soon as they'd like. They tend to forget the highly recruited athletes in front of them with more experience.</p><p>Friends and family back home are in their ears asking them why they aren't playing. Embarrassment and ego add to the frustration.</p><p>“There's no doubt about it. It's probably the No. 1 thing besides your personal ego,” Square said. “And it's always coming from the guys that don't even know anything about football. Guys are always going to have their opinion, and your family loves you and wants to see you play. But you have to understand that they're not football coaches.”</p><p>Vinnie Sunseri was the Class 6A defensive player of the year in the state his senior year at Northridge High School. But he was limited mostly to special teams play his freshman season at UA. </p><p>“It gets frustrating coming from high school and not being able to get on the field,” Sunseri said. “But you know you have to respect the process. I did it when I was a freshman. It was frustrating just to be on special teams sometimes, but you can make a name for yourself on special teams, and that's what I tried to do my freshman year. You've got to be patient with it because when your time comes, it comes and you've got to be ready for it. And if you're focusing on getting on the field and whining about not being on the field, you won't be ready for when your time comes. I just tell the younger guys to focus, focus, focus, because when your time comes, you've got to be ready for it.”</p><p>Keeping a good attitude and making the most of whatever opportunity is given is key. So is the leadership of having an experienced player throw an arm around a young guy and show him the way. Sunseri had Mark Barron. Square did it his senior season.</p><p>“I did it all the time. I'd catch guys pouting and put them in their place,” Square said. “I think just working toward perfection as a player is really what guys need to do. When their name is called, they'll be more prepared if they just work towards perfection on the field.”</p><p>Square recently made active roster for Philadelphia after being signed as an undrafted free agent.</p><p>Reach Aaron Suttles at aaron@tidesports.com or at 205-722-0229.</p>